Name: _______________________________________________________

Lab Activity: Transmission of Disease

Will YOU become infected?

You are watching the news and see a story about a virus that is spreading throughout the local
community. The virus spreads through the exchange of bodily fluids. You become increasingly worried
about your risk of infection and have decided to go to the doctor’s office in order to get tested for the
virus.

Virus: We must first decide what virus we would like to infect our community with. Write down the virus
chosen by the class: ___________________________________________________________

Before Testing:
1. You need to obtain your body fluids. In order to do this, I will come around and give you one
Dixie cup filled with distilled water. This will represent your bodily fluids. However, one of you
will be given a cup that contains a few drops of Sodium Hydroxide. This represents the virus and
so you will already be infected with the disease and have the potential to infect those people
you swap bodily fluids with. You will not know if you already have the disease or not!
2. Next, you will need to swap bodily fluids with three people in your community.
a. Choose a partner
b. One of you needs to pour your liquid into the other person’s cup.
c. Now your fluids have mixed.
d. Pour half of the liquid back into the empty cup. You should both now have an equal
amount of bodily fluids.
e. Record your partner’s name in the following data table.
f. You need to do this THREE times ONLY!

Exchange # Partner Name

3
Make a Guess:
3. How many people do you think will become infected by the end of the lab? Remember, only one
person will be infected with the virus in the beginning.
Time to Get Tested:
4. Now that you have swapped bodily fluids with others, you are at-risk for an infection. You have
now decided to go to the doctor.
a. One at a time, make a doctor’s visit. I can be found at the front table.
b. I will place a few drops of Phenolthaline indicator into your cup. If pink, you tested
positive (+) for the virus. You must then put on a face mask and report to Quarantine. If
clear, you tested negative (-) for the virus. Write your test results below:

Test results: ______________

c. Now, record your name and results on the class data sheet.

Let’s Track the Virus:

1. Complete the following chart with the class data:

Before Testing: After Testing:

# of Infected # of Normal, Non- # of Infected # of Normal, Non-
People infected People People infected People

2. Draw a bar chart that represents the percentage of people that were exposed/unexposed in the
beginning and by the end of the lab (so you should have four bars total). Label your axes.
Summary Questions:
1. Based on the classroom discussion, who do you believe originally had the virus and passed it on
to the rest of the class? Why would it be important to find out where/who the virus came from?

2. How can we protect the rights of those who are infected and still prevent the spread of disease?

3. How would the results differ if everyone could choose how many contacts to have, including the
option to have no contacts? How does this better resemble real life?

4. Think about modes of transmission. How would the spread of a disease differ if the pathogen is
airborne, foodborne, waterborne, requires physical contact like a handshake, or intimate
contact like sex, or a kiss? Which would be the deadliest mode of transmission if a terrorist was
trying to intentionally create an epidemic?

5. Are STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) usually spread between strangers or people we know
well? Always? Discuss. Why is it important to know your partner's complete sexual history
before you decide to have sex? If he/she won't tell you, or if you suspect an active history,
consider that you are effectively sleeping with all of his/her former partners. To protect yourself,
is it reasonable to propose that you both get tested for STDs before having sex? It's safe to
assume that everybody lies about sex!
6. If a vaccine is in limited supply, why do first responders (police officers, firefighters, paramedics,
nurses, doctors) get the first doses? Is this fair?

7. Many diseases, such as the common cold, don't have visible symptoms during their most
infectious stage. Why? What would happen if they did?

8. Describe a situation where certain people (the old, the young, the immune compromised) are
more "at risk" than others to a disease. Why isn't everybody equally susceptible? Why does
getting vaccinated protect people who are too young or otherwise unable to get vaccinated?

9. Which disease will be more evolutionarily successful -- one that kills quickly or one that kills
slowly? Why?

10. If you try to "think like a disease" what is your primary objective if you want to be successful?
What is the purpose of the host? Explain.